The story

Friday, April 23th (afternoon)

Three days before my due date. I had no symptoms, no contractions, and didn't think that the baby was coming any time soon. I went to my scheduled OB visit to check on the baby and was told that my cervix was closed and that it would likely take another week for the baby to arrive.

Friday, April 23th (evening)

Feeling a lot of pressure and thinking maybe I am having braxton hicks.

Saturday, April 24th (early morning)

I woke up from a dream that I was in labor. I woke up to realize that I was in a lot of pain. We started to time the contractions and realize that they are about 3 minutes apart and lasting 35 to 45 seconds.
An hour later they are still going strong so we call the hospital. They ask about the intensity of the contractions and if the baby has been moving. I suddenly realized I haven't felt the baby move all morning. The nurse tells us to drive safely to the hospital.

We take a picture before we leave the house.

Saturday, April 24th (morning)

It's now around 7 am and we have arrived at the hospital. Baby and contractions are monitored and we are told to go home for the next eight to ten hours because my cervix is still closed. The nurses thing that the baby would come later that day but it could still be another couple of days for my cervix to be dilated enough to be admitted to the hospital.

As we get ready to leave the nurse tells us that there was a drop in the baby's heart rate for a few seconds and that we should stay for another hour to monitor the baby. During that hour there is another drop in the baby's heart rate and the doctor comes in to talk to us.

The doctor says that these drops in the baby's heart rate are reasons to be concerned. The drops tell us that the baby is having difficulty with labor. The doctor explains that if her heart rate drops again she feels it's best to do a c-section to get the baby out. A few minutes after that she comes back and tells us that it has happened again. As soon as the anesthesiologist on call is done with her current surgery they will take us in for the c-section. While we wait the baby's heart rate drops a few more times. The anesthesiologist comes is to talk to us about the c-section.

Because of my previous heart problems she is not sure I should have a spinal since the heart changes that happen with a spinal are very sudden. She is also concerned that an epidural isn't always very effective for a c-section and that we don't have the time to administer it as slowly as she would like to. She decides to consult with another anesthesiologist.

When the anesthesiologist comes back she tells us that my blood platelets (the part of the blood that helps it to clot) are very low and that a spinal or epidural are not safe and they will have to put me to sleep for the c-section.



Saturday, April 24th (morning)

At 11:14 am Rebecca Marlene Beard arrived into this world (we pronounce Marlene as "Marlaney", which is the Portuguese pronunciation of Marlene, my mom's name) . She weighed 7 pounds and measured 20 inches. Dad stayed with her while mom was recovering and waking up. Around 1 pm mom was able to meet her little angel and she couldn't be happier. Maybe she would have been happier if she was not so drowsy and groggy :)



For the next few days mommy and baby would recover at the hospital. Mommy was treated for her low platelets and both were released from the hospital on Tuesday night, April 27th.

We are now home with both sets of grandparents fighting for Rebecca's attention. We are all doing well and we could not be happier or more in love with our sweet little angel.

Rebecca is a very good baby. She is sweet and patient and she only cries if she REALLY feels like she needs to.

Ps: Some of these pictures, including this last one were taken by Rachele Valadez. She is a photographer friend of the family. She offered to go to the hospital and take pictures when she found out that the baby would be here before my parents arrived from Brazil. Thank you so much Rachele! My parents and I really appreciated it.